By Aubrey Flynn
Contributor, Food & Beverage Magazine
Founder, GOALSapp.ai
New York City has always been a proving ground for hospitality.
The standards are high, the margins are tight, and the operators who succeed here often shape the direction of the entire industry. That reality was on full display during day two of the 2026 New York Restaurant Show at the Javits Center, where chefs, restaurateurs, and industry leaders gathered to exchange ideas about the future of dining.
Across the show floor and inside packed conference sessions, one theme stood out. Elevating hospitality today requires more than great food. It demands storytelling, leadership, culture, and a relentless commitment to the guest experience.
Few sessions captured that shift more clearly than the panel titled Elevating the Dining Experience, moderated by Herb Karlitz, founder of Karlitz & Company.
For more than three decades, Karlitz and his firm have produced thousands of culinary and hospitality events for global brands including American Express, Resy, EY, and Merrill Lynch. His work has helped shape the modern food and wine landscape by bringing together the people who define it.
On stage with him was a group of operators whose influence spans the industry.
Marcus Samuelsson, chef and restaurateur behind the Marcus Samuelsson Group.
Eugene Remm, co-founder of Catch Hospitality Group.
Ayesha Nurdjaja, chef and partner at Shuka and Shukette.
Simon Kim, founder and CEO of Gracious Hospitality Management.
Each brought a different lens, but a shared belief emerged. Great hospitality begins with identity.
For Ayesha Nurdjaja, that identity was discovered through personal connection.
“Both my father and mother were amazing cooks,” she shared. “It wasn’t until I moved out when I was 19 and hungry that I realized I had no idea how to cook and that was a problem.”
What followed was a self-taught journey. Watching chefs on television, recreating dishes after work, and building a relationship with food that would ultimately define her career.
“It was the first time as an adult I had a connection with food,” she said. “It unleashed a part of my soul where I created this thing with my hands and I knew I needed to be a part of that.”
Nurdjaja emphasized that today’s dining experience goes beyond what is served.
“When you think about the elevated dining experience it’s about a little bit of entertainment and a little bit of nourishment,” she said.
She also noted the role expectations now play in shaping perception.
“A lot of people come to the restaurant and they already have this preconceived notion. They heard from a friend or they read a review and they want to size it up,” she explained. “Sometimes you should just come in with an open heart and see what we have to offer.”
For her, clarity is everything.
“The thing is to really know who you are, what your product is and what your voice is trying to say and make sure that it’s very clear.”
That idea of clarity carried into Marcus Samuelsson’s perspective on connection.
“You never want to be the one saying ‘they didn’t get it,’” Samuelsson said. “Maybe they didn’t, but it’s also how did you articulate it. So you have to own up to that and tweak it, make it more delicious, and connect.”
He pointed to a challenge many operators face.
“We’ve all gone to great restaurants and the dining room is empty. Very often it’s because they didn’t connect.”
Samuelsson also highlighted how the digital era has fundamentally reshaped hospitality.
“When I started in fine dining, you had to be in the room to understand it,” he said. “Today, because of social media, everything is experienced or you can see it. And I think that changes everything.”
In that environment, identity becomes even more critical.
“The strength of your identity and the culture you build around it is not everything, but it’s a good 70%.”
Simon Kim approached the conversation through the lens of leadership and team building.
Rather than prioritizing pedigree, he looks for consistency, attitude, and resilience.
“If somebody had a five year job at Olive Garden, even though we’re a fine dining restaurant, we’d love to hire that person,” he said. “It shows they have the patience and they have the grit to push it through.”
But beyond hiring, Kim emphasized staying grounded in purpose.
“I find the North Star within,” he said. “Instead of trying to chase what is the next fad. What’s next should be what your North Star in your heart says.”
For operators navigating a trend-driven industry, the message was clear. Longevity comes from knowing who you are, not chasing what is popular.
Eugene Remm brought the conversation back to experience and emotion.
“When I was 22 and moved to New York City and went to Pastis for the first time, that experience changed my life,” he said. “I walked in there on a Sunday night and to see it full with all these unique people, I was just blown away.”
That moment shaped his understanding of hospitality as something deeper than service.
“I just think authenticity is the only thing that’s going to break through all the noise that’s happening right now in our industry,” Remm said. “If you walk into a restaurant and it doesn’t have a through line or a point of view or a personality or character, then I think it’s a wasted meal.”
For Remm, hospitality is ultimately about how people feel.
“If you can’t be hospitable you should not be in this business,” he said. “If you can’t inject kindness when people walk through the door, you should probably do something else for a living.”
“On top of cooking really great food and giving great service you need to make people feel good.”
That sentiment echoed across the entire panel.
Restaurants today are no longer defined solely by cuisine or design. They are defined by the clarity of their identity, the strength of their culture, and their ability to create meaningful experiences for guests.
Karlitz guided the conversation with the perspective of someone who has spent decades bringing together the most influential voices in hospitality. His role reflected the same philosophy that has defined his career. Create environments where connection, conversation, and collaboration can happen.
Despite the challenges facing the industry, from rising costs to shifting consumer expectations, the outlook from the stage was clear.
Great hospitality endures.
It is built on authenticity, consistency, and a deep understanding of how to make people feel.
And in New York City, that standard continues to set the tone for the rest of the industry.
